I totally agree with the message that the author was putting across about the "game of school" and how most students know how to play it. I must admit that when I was younger, I totally played the game of school. At some point in college I may play the game again! All through high school, all my friends and I would look for were short cuts through the work and studying. It was easier and then we were able to go out more and have fun rather than working all the time. If there was a chapter that was way too long to read in the book, that is what Sparknotes was for! It gave you the summary and analysis of the chapter. When you went to class the next day, not only did you know what happened in the chapter but you knew what it all meant analytically speaking, in case you were the unlucky one who was called on to explain it all. As for teachers, I experienced many teaachers who gave that speech in the beginning of the year and you thought, "man, this class will be a breeze." They tell you, come to class and turn in your work on time and you'll pass. What they should have been doing was telling us that without hard work and effort, we wouldn't pass the class. It might have scared us, but it would have helped in the long run. Maybe I would have actually read the chapter in the book and taken notes instead of reading it on sparknotes. School should be about retaining the information you're reading, not, "how can I pass without actually trying?" I believe that if emphasis was put more on effort rather than on how we can easily pass, I would have tried so much more my senior year and would have actually retained information I learned. Unless you took an AP class, I don't think people in my school really tried their hardest in some classes. Schools should focus more on how to avoid "the game" and get kids and teachers to both try more and give more effort.
I totally agree with the message that the author was putting across about the "game of school" and how most students know how to play it. I must admit that when I was younger, I totally played the game of school. At some point in college I may play the game again! All through high school, all my friends and I would look for were short cuts through the work and studying. It was easier and then we were able to go out more and have fun rather than working all the time. If there was a chapter that was way too long to read in the book, that is what Sparknotes was for! It gave you the summary and analysis of the chapter. When you went to class the next day, not only did you know what happened in the chapter but you knew what it all meant analytically speaking, in case you were the unlucky one who was called on to explain it all. As for teachers, I experienced many teaachers who gave that speech in the beginning of the year and you thought, "man, this class will be a breeze." They tell you, come to class and turn in your work on time and you'll pass. What they should have been doing was telling us that without hard work and effort, we wouldn't pass the class. It might have scared us, but it would have helped in the long run. Maybe I would have actually read the chapter in the book and taken notes instead of reading it on sparknotes. School should be about retaining the information you're reading, not, "how can I pass without actually trying?" I believe that if emphasis was put more on effort rather than on how we can easily pass, I would have tried so much more my senior year and would have actually retained information I learned. Unless you took an AP class, I don't think people in my school really tried their hardest in some classes. Schools should focus more on how to avoid "the game" and get kids and teachers to both try more and give more effort.